Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the third report of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights in relation to Supplementary Estimates (B), 2011-12, Votes 30b and 35b, under the Department of Justice.

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the first report of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security in relation to Bill C-19, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Firearms Act. The committee has studied the bill and has decided to report the bill back to the House without amendment.

My constituents in Crowfoot and millions of Canadians have been waiting for this moment for more than 10 years. Bill C-19 would scrap the failed and costly long gun registry. This bill would decriminalize law-abiding responsible firearms owners and users all across Canada. I am pleased to present this report.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to reintroduce a private member's bill that would designate the month of June as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis month. As it says, it is also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease. This bill would ensure that throughout Canada in each and every year, the month of June would be known as ALS month.

I have a very personal connection to this terrible disease. I lost my father to ALS a number of years ago, so raising awareness and encouraging research are causes close to my heart. I hope all members will support this initiative.

Mr. Speaker, I proudly rise this afternoon to reintroduce a bill that would create a fully refundable tax credit for membership dues paid to veterans' organizations.

The bill would provide a tax refund to members of the Royal Canadian Legion, the Army, Navy and Air Force Veterans in Canada Association and other veterans' organizations for the full cost of their membership dues.

Veterans' organizations have been facing a tough financial time. A tax credit for membership dues would allow them to raise the money they need to operate without putting their members into financial hardship, many of whom are living on a fixed income.

This measure would give our veterans' organizations some important fiscal room which they critically need. Veterans' organizations do so much valuable work in our communities and their members give countless hours to volunteer in our communities for local causes.

I want to acknowledge a particularly dedicated volunteer from my riding, Mr. Harvey McAuley from Collingwood Legion Branch 48, who is feeling under the weather right now.

I hope all members of the House will support my bill which would give financial relief to veterans' organizations and their members.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to reintroduce a bill that would lower the voting age in federal elections to 16 years. I believe this is an important step that would improve democracy and civic participation in Canada.

The history of voting rights in Canada is one of making voting increasingly accessible. Initially, only property-owning males 21 years or older were eligible to vote. Over time, women, first nations and other minorities were included. The property requirement was scrapped and the voting age was lowered to 18.

I believe it is time for a serious debate about further broadening access to our most cherished democratic rights. We must note that young people pay taxes and are subject to federal laws, and therefore, they deserve a voice in government.

Too many Canadians choose not to vote, and non-voting is epidemic among young people. Lowering the voting age to 16 years would ensure that new voters would be in high school for their first election. This would permit reinvigorated civics education in our schools, making young people better aware of political issues, their impact on their lives and the importance of voter participation in our democracy.

We note that a number of other countries allow citizens to vote at 16 years, including Austria and Brazil.

I hope the bill spurs a much needed conversation about improving democracy and voter participation in Canada. I seek the support of all of my colleagues to add to that important democratic debate.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to reintroduce a bill that would remove the federal sales tax from the purchase of batteries used in medical equipment or devices.

This idea comes from a constituent of mine, Mr. James McAllister, who is a senior in Vancouver Kingsway. He lives in a city with a high cost of living. He has medical expenses, which include the purchase of batteries for essential medical devices. He was shocked that he had to pay tax on his medically necessary purchases.

There is an important principle reflected in our current law that sales taxes should not be charged on products that are essential for health and well-being.

The initial purchase of medical devices, including the battery, is currently tax exempt. However, tax is charged on replacement batteries for these medically necessary devices.

Ending the sales tax on replacement batteries would fix an important oversight in our tax laws. The cost to taxpayers for this exemption would be slight, but would have a significant positive impact on many low income seniors in my community and across the country.

As members of Parliament, we should all be in our communities talking to our constituents, hearing their concerns and proposing legislation that addresses their real concerns.

I hope that I can count on the support of all parties for this sensible and reasonable bill.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Ajax—Pickering for seconding my motion.

The bill would amend the Canada National Parks Act by renaming the St. Lawrence Islands National Park as the 1000 Islands national park.

St. Lawrence Islands National Park could be almost anywhere from Kingston to Newfoundland, but in fact it is in the 1000 Islands region. As such, a more appropriate name for the park would be the 1000 Islands national park. There has been significant public consultation on this and I am pleased to put this bill forward.

Mr. Speaker, I do not have as many bills as the member for Vancouver Kingsway, but I am happy to introduce this private member's bill that would amend the Employment Insurance Act.

The bill would assist parents when they are caring for a child who is severely ill. I have had this bill in previous parliaments. The bill would increase compassionate care with the possibility of additional expansion of that support if the child remains under medical care and the parent must remain home with the child. I am happy to put this bill forward.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have an opportunity to reintroduce my bill to amend the Parliamentary Employment and Staff Relations Act. I hope that all members representing all caucuses in the House of Commons will support what is a matter of simple justice.

My bill proposes to amend the Parliamentary Employment and Staff Relations Act to ensure that staff of senators and members of the House of Commons who serve in the capacity of member, leader, House leader, or whip, would enjoy the benefit of being permitted, if they so choose, to organize a union, to belong to a union, and to enjoy the benefits of collective bargaining.

I do not need to tell members that this is a set of rights and privileges that is considered fundamental in a modern democratic society such as Canada. In fact, we work long and hard to ensure that those rights are protected and advanced for all working people.

I must say that I was astonished when I arrived on Parliament Hill to discover that only the NDP caucus had voluntarily recognized the organization of its staff on Parliament Hill. In spite of that, they still do not enjoy the full benefits of collective bargaining. It remains true to this day that neither the employer nor the employee enjoys the full recognition of a union or an employer that is engaged in a collective bargaining process, and has obligations that go with that under the current legislation that governs this House.

As I said, this is a matter of fundamental justice, and for that reason, I hope that all members of the House will support my bill.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce my bill, an act to establish the department of peace, to help advance the cause of peace in Canada and throughout the world.

The idea that all people can live in peace may seem a bit utopian, but each generation must, on behalf of the next generation, do everything in its power to come as close to reaching this goal as possible.

I would like to pay tribute to my former colleague, Bill Siksay, for introducing this bill in the last Parliament. He truly was and remains an inspiration for all of us.

I also thank the folks from the Canadian Department of Peace Initiative for all their hard work in advancing this cause, a number of whom are here today. I extend a special thanks to Bill Bhaneja, the co-founder of CDPI, as well as Theresa Dunn, co-chair of CDPI, Koozma Tarasoff, a Doukhobor writer, historian and long-time advocate of peace, and Laura Savinkoff of Grand Forks of the Boundary Peace Initiative, among others.

This is truly a non-partisan issue. I urge all my colleagues on both sides of the House to join us in support of this important initiative. Let us give peace a chance.